


Full

by SkyWrite



Category: Original Work
Genre: Belly Kink, Belly Rubs, Eating Disorders, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Force-Feeding, Gen, Platonic Cuddling, Starvation, Stomach Ache, Stuffing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-06-08 18:29:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15249366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyWrite/pseuds/SkyWrite
Summary: For some, accepting care is far more difficult than providing it.





	Full

“Is this really so necessary?”  
His low growl was a bit more aggressive than he meant it to sound, his lips pressing together as he avoided their gazes to hide the regret flickering in his eyes.

N’s gaze narrowed sternly.  
“You’ve eaten nothing all day. For two days, potentially, but no one was keeping a close enough eye on you to be certain. And it's been like this... for weeks. You can't possibly think that we haven't noticed.”  
“I ate yesterday.” E protested, desperate to sound firm but hating the sullenness in his own tone. It wasn’t a lie, but he hadn’t eaten much.

“You have to stop this.” N’s voice was half-scolding, half-pleading, as he leaned close enough to force E to look him in the eyes as the other man swallowed hard. “We know this is difficult for you. But you can’t starve yourself like this no matter how bad you feel otherwise. Malnutrition is the last thing you need to deal with right now.”

E tore his gaze away as a bowl of something warm and savory-smelling was placed in front of him. He wanted to be grateful, to thank them, to show how much their love meant, but he could barely think past the unbearable wave of self-loathing that was washing over him. He hated to cause them concern for his well-being. He hated being the center of _attention-_

“E.” She spoke up next to him and he blinked, shook away the thoughts. He grasped the spoon in his mechanical hand - his organic one was shaking too much at the moment, and lifted a mouthful of food to his lips. It was thick, flavorful stew; rich with meat and vegetables and with a pleasant tang of chives in the broth. 

“Thank you.” He finally choked out after he’d swallowed the first spoonful, and B placed a warm hand on his shoulder.  
“You really musn’t be so forgetful, darling.” She teased gently, and regret squeezed his heart again. They both knew better, even though he’d never been able to bring himself to explain it out loud. The sinister, cruel feeling of triumph, of _control,_ in forcing his body to be hungry, when the rest of the world was crashing to the ground around him. If he could do nothing else, he could look back on his childhood days when he scraped by on barely three meals a week, and remind himself that he was powerful, so powerful, because who else could have done that and live to become the man that he had today?

Hunger had been such a constant in his early life that it was nearly a comfort. A once painful sensation that had morphed and twisted into old familiarity, that he returned to time and time again even now to assure himself that he was stronger than all the burdens he had to carry. When he was hungry, he was strong. When he was…

He stopped suddenly, gulping against a bubble of air that rose in his throat. He felt B’s hand press to his back; he’d distracted both her and N from their quiet conversation off to the side.  
“E?” She prompted, and he forced back another hiccup.  
“I think that is enough.” He mumbled with little hope, knowing that’d he’d barely dented the meal in front of him. Sure enough, B clucked disapprovingly.  
“I don’t think so. You can’t be full already?”  
The pressure in his insides forced up a faint burp that he quickly failed to stifle as he pressed the back of his organic hand to his lips. “Quite.”

“Half.” N’s voice floated over his shoulder. “Finish half and you can be done after that.”  
“I am… not sure if I can.” E admitted miserably, and he heard a patient sigh.  
“You can and you will. You’ve let yourself go too hungry for too long. You’ve got to get back to normal capacity somehow.”

Despite his growing discomfort, the stew never lost its flavor or pleasantness. Even as sharp pains began to twist in his stomach, the thick broth and tender meat and greens were luxuries that he never allowed himself privately. A multi-millionaire he’d built himself into, and yet, never once learned to eat as he should. No wonder his friends were worried about him. No wonder he caused them so much distress…

White-hot pain flashed in his belly without warning, and E let the spoon clatter back to the side of the bowl, a faint groan slipping out before he clenched his teeth, and pressed his hands to his middle before he realized he’d moved.  
He was almost halfway through… maybe it was enough.  
“I-“ He started, then a strangled belch left his lips and he shut his eyes in mortification, the swell of his stomach pressing painfully against his fingertips. 

The other two had come up beside him again, and this time it was N’s hand on his back, soft and comforting, massaging circles against his tense shoulders.  
“Im sorry. I know you’re hurting, but you’ve got to tough it out for now. It’ll get better once you get back on track. Just a little more, then you can be finished.”  
“Surely this could be done in smaller increments?” He almost pleaded, lifting a hand to his mouth again - whether to prevent another burp or convince himself not to be outright sick, he wasn’t certain. “This is hardly conducive to-“  
“No, because we can’t stay with you every minute of the day. Not until the commotion dies down. Maybe if you had let us help from the _beginning_ instead of wresting control-”

“I was trying to- I was only-“ E tried to quash back the rising sense of panic and hurt, but then his painfully-full stomach clenched dangerously and his words cut off in a low moan as he hunched forward. N’s hand found his shoulders again and then his voice broke.  
“No, I’m sorry. I- that's not- you were right to begin with and we couldn't see it. I'm sorry. It's just so hard to-”  
“You’ve done more than anyone else.” B cut in quietly. “Singlehandedly. We’d probably not be here right now if you hadn't stepped in... But seeing you waste away under the stress is killing us, E. We can’t let you shield us from harm then stand back and do nothing while you starve to death. You’ve got to let yourself be taken care of when you can’t do it yourself. You’ve got to let us help.”

“I did not intend-“ His words were strained and thin-sounding, hands cradling his swollen belly, the muscles of his abdomen fighting against the sudden influx of heavy food. Then B’s hands pressed over his, one over his mechanical fingers and one over his real ones.  
“Shh. You don’t have to do this alone, alright? We might not be able to do much out there, but let us do what we can right now.”  
E opened his mouth to pointlessly, fruitlessly, protest, but he only hiccuped and shuddered just as N sat himself down across from him and picked up the spoon.

Chagrined, E looked into the other man’s eyes with faint horror to be treated with such indignity but N shook his head with a weary insistence.  
“Eat. You have to.” And the way the spoon was pressed to his lips, E could not refuse despite the deep shame cutting through him. He knew, ultimately, that this was for his own good. Besides, he wasn’t certain he could pull his hands away from his stomach long enough to even hold the spoon.

He opened up and accepted the mouthful, chewing slowly and swallowing painfully before taking the next. He didn’t want to complain, to make things even worse than they already were, but his belly was so terribly sore from the long-denied meal that he could barely breathe. A faint whimper slipped past his teeth after a few more bites, despite his every attempt to contain it. It was followed by a dreadful-sounding gurgle that churned up from somewhere deep in his gut and N paused, exchanging a faintly alarmed look with B. Apparently they’d also heard it.

“Alright. Okay, that’s enough.” N finally relented, putting the spoon down and pushing the bowl away from both of them. He rose to his feet and came around the table, exhaustion lining his eyes at the agonized haze in E’s expression.  
“Let’s get you to bed.”

It was a struggle to his feet, but with help, he managed to not only get into the next room, but also to shed his business-formal wear and change into soft clothes to sleep in. He all but crawled between the covers, his composure slowly breaking, more soft whimpers bubbling up with every breath. His hands clutched at his swollen stomach and he burped more than once, unable to find relief.  
Then he heard a soft voice and felt the covers rustle as N slipped into the bed behind him.

“What… what-“ He could only bewilderedly mumble his confusion, then realized B was folding herself into the other side of the bed, curling close to him as well. “I do not wish to-“  
“You’re not causing us any trouble.” N insisted firmly before E could even hope to finish yet another sentence. “We just want to help you. We want you to feel better.”

Then warm, strong hands curled around his waist and pressed gently to the curve of his abdomen. The terrible ache in his belly receded just slightly at the warmth, then he groaned aloud before he could restrain himself as N’s fingers pressed down, rubbed soothing circles against the pain. He was cradled in caring arms back against the man’s chest, just as B’s hand patted gently just above the edge of his ribcage.  
Another soft belch rumbled up and he stiffened, closing his eyes again and cursing his body. B chuckled and he peered at her blearily.

“You’ll only feel better if you let it out, darling.” She pointed out, patting against his chest again with a soft thump while N’s hands continued to press out every aching, twisting cramp in his overfull stomach. E writhed once before forcing himself to be still, groaning again as he breathed out, both the other two carefully feeling over his stuffed belly to try to comfort him in any way that they could.

“Maybe I did push him too far.” E could hear the regretful whisper behind him, but then B shook her head.  
“Look at him! He wouldn’t have lasted much longer if we’d let this go on.” Her voice turned teasing again and he squinted at her in exhaustion. “No more getting away with skipping meals, E.”

“I’m sorry…” He moaned faintly, belly rumbling painfully under N’s palms, struggling with the meager meal that felt so unbearably excessive. “I never intended to cause you concern… or allow the problem to go on for this long. I realize I have been foolish, but it is just…” A low gurgle interrupted him just before he burped again, grunting with, finally, a hint of relief.

“It’s what you’re used to.” N finished gravely, pausing for the briefest of moments as E sank back again heavily. He hadn’t even finished the bowl, and he was _this_ miserable… “But of all the ways you could cope, I hope you realize this is one of the worst possible choices. Eventually you _have_ to have food, E. You can’t run off empty forever.”  
N waited until he’d gotten a soft moan of agreement before he resumed the massage, somewhat relieved that it seemed to be helping whatever atrocious bellyache his friend was currently suffering. 

“Get him on his back so I can get his arm off.” B spoke up suddenly, smirking cheerfully at E’s muffled protest. He didn’t struggle though as he was coaxed into a different position, freeing his left shoulder where B pressed the switch beneath the mechanical fibers. The limb detached with a clicking sound, and B pulled the contraption away and set it on the nightstand nearby. E breathed a pained sigh and N made a wider circle over his distended middle with his fingertips in an attempt to soothe.

“Didn’t M tell us it’s bad for your shoulder to sleep with that?” B chided, combing her fingers through the strands of E's long hair to push it back from his face. He was sweating slightly but thankfully didn't look too green.  
“Such an assertion is conditional.” He argued, but barely, voice thick with sleepiness and lingering discomfort. “It is only detrimental when repeated several nights in succession.”  
“And how many nights has it been?”  
“Four.” He mumbled uncertainly, wincing at a cramp that gurgled audibly in his belly even as N did his best to rub it away. “Maybe five.” A kneading motion forced up another quiet belch of strained digestion and he flushed with shame.

“If you get worked up you’ll only feel worse.” B warned as she pressed close again, and he nodded once, trying to submit to the gentle care.  
His breathing was slowing, his eyes closed and his limbs and head laid more heavily against the mattress. The restless writhing in his muscles had calmed and B rubbed a hand up and down his side, loosening the tension there, while N continued massaging his overfull stomach with a firm but gentle pressure.  
“Thank you…” E murmured dazedly past the fog shrouding his thoughts, and if he’d been more awake, he would have seen the relieved flicker of a smile on N’s face that brightened instead of fell when he hiccuped faintly again.  
“Of course, darling.” B’s voice was a bit softer than she usually let show. A kiss was pressed to his temple, and he felt it, but was too far gone to respond.

Consciousness was slipping from him, and only the faintest hint of a sigh signaled when he dropped off completely.

**Author's Note:**

> The setting and characters are deliberately left ambiguous to avoid discovery by readers who follow my usual stories. I have to have some way to get my fix for my own ocs without airing my bizarre kink for the whole world to see, right?


End file.
